eastern washington game notes, depth chart

EAGLE FOOTBALL Monday, Sept. 1, 2014Contact: Dave Cook (509-359-6334, 280-2502 cell, [email protected])Internet: HTTP://WWW.GOEAGS.COM or HTTP://WWW.EWU.EDUTwitter: @ewuathletics, #GoEags, #BigSkyFB, # FCS, @CoachBBaldwinFacebook: EWU Football, EWU Athletics Instagram: ewuathletics

Eastern Returns to Seattle for Nationally-Ranked Matchup

Ranked No. 1 before and after 2011 narrow loss to the Huskies, Eagles are No. 2 in FCS entering this weeks meeting versus Pac-12 foe Washington

Three years later or even one, the Eastern Washington University football team finds itself in a similar situation heading to Seattle, Wash.

In just their second-ever meeting against the Washington Huskies, the Eagles enter Saturdays (Sept. 6) 12:07 p.m. game at Husky Stadium ranked No. 2 in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision. The Pac-12 Conference foe, meanwhile, was ranked 25th in the preseason Associated Press poll of NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision schools (this weeks poll is released on Sept. 2), meaning the Eagles could have a chance at repeating the historic feat it accomplished a year ago.

This weeks game is being televised nationally on the Pac-12 Networks, interestingly, by the same crew that worked last years season-opening 49-46 victory at Oregon State. That victory was just the fourth time an FCS school has defeated a ranked FBS team, and the Eagles may get a chance to be the fifth this season.

Fans may also listen to the EWU-UW game live regionally on 700-AM ESPN and via the web at www.700espn.com, with pre-game coverage starting 1 1/2 hours prior to kickoff.

Were excited and appreciative of the opportunity to play the Huskies again, said head coach Beau Baldwin, who grew up in nearby Tacoma, Wash. Over half of our roster is from the Puget Sound area and 70 percent of our players are from the state of Washington. So its a great opportunity to play in a game like this in front of family and friends, to play an incredible Pac-12 program and to play at an incredible place. Most of our coaching staff is also from the Seattle area, so we all grew up watching the Huskies and were around their program. This game has a special meaning to it a number of ways.

In 2011, Eastern was ranked No. 1 in FCS when it narrowly lost to the Huskies 30-27. Eastern was driving for a potential game-winning score, but Bo Levi Mitchells pass into the end zone was intercepted, spoiling his 473-yard passing day that came on his way to winning the Walter Payton Award given to the top player in FCS.

In a battle of unbeaten teams, Eastern has defeated Sam Houston State 56-35 and Montana Western 41-9 in its two games thus far this season, while Washington edged Hawaii 17-16 in its

2014 Eagle Football#2 Eastern Washington

University Eaglesat

University of Washington Huskies

Saturday, Sept. 6, 2014 12:07 p.m. PacificHusky Stadium (70,138) Seattle, Wash.

EWU Coach: Beau Baldwin (Central Washington 96)School Record: 58-22/38-10 Big Sky Conference (7th Season)Career Record: 68-25 (8th Season -- was 10-3 at CWU in 2007, 6-5 at EWU in

2008, 8-4 in 2009, 13-2 in 2010, 6-5 in 2011, 11-3 in 2012 and 12-3 in 2013)2014: 2-0/0-0 Big Sky2013: 12-3/8-0 Big Sky (OUTRIGHT CHAMPIONS; FCS Playoffs semifinals)Last Game: #1 EWU 41, Montana Western 9 (Aug. 30 in Cheney, Wash.)TV: Televised live nationally by the Pac-12 Networks (Roxy Bernstein play-by-

play, Anthony Herron analyst, Drea Avent sideline)Webcast: www.pac-12.com/liveRadio: 700-AM ESPN in Spokane. Larry Weir returns for his 24th season

calling the play-by-play, with analysis handled by Paul Sorensen and sideline commentary by Keith Osso. Osso will also serve as host of the Washington Trust Bank Tailgate Show, starting 1 1/2 hours prior to kickoff.

Internet Radio: www.700espn.com or www.tunein.com.Radio iPhone App: Search for 700 ESPN and download app. An app is also

available for tunein radio.Live Stats: ewulive.statb.us (web) or ewustats.com (mobile phones)Weekly Coaches Show: Mondays at 6 p.m. at the Impulse Club at Northern

Quest Resort & Casino . . . 700-AM ESPN, www.700espn.com & via iphone app. (search for Spokane Radio and download app).

Watch Parties: Consult EWU social media outlets for details the Friday before games. Those who may carry EWU games include Epic at Northern Quest Casino and Resort in Airway Heights, the Swinging Doors in North Spokane and at Eagles Pub in Cheney.

2014 SCHEDULE

Date Opponent Time/ResultA 23 +Sam Houston State W, 56-35A 30 ~Montana Western W, 41-9S 6 at ^Washington 12:05 p.m.S 20 at $Montana State 12:10 p.m.S 27 at *UC Davis 6:05 p.m.O 4 *%~Idaho State 1:35 p.m.O 11 at *Southern Utah 12:05 p.m.O 18 *~Northern Colorado 1:05 p.m.O 25 at *$Northern Arizona 12:40 p.m.N 1 *#~North Dakota 2:05 p.m.N 8 *&$Montana 12:10 p.m.N 21 (Friday) at *$Portland State 7:10 p.m.N 29 FCS Playoffs Begin All Times Pacific and are subject to change.*Big Sky Conference Game. #Homecom-ing. %Eastern Athletics Hall of Fame Day. &Military Appreciation Day. +Televised live on ESPN. $Televised regionally on Root Sports. ^Televised on Pac-12 Networks. ~Televised regionally by SWX digital 6.2 in Spokane/Cheney/Sandpoint/Lewiston, 23.3 in Yakima and 25.3 in the Tri-Cities; also via Comcast 306/112 (Spokane); Davis Cable 514/81.2/12 (Cheney); Time Warner 306 (Coeur dAlene & Pullman/Moscow); Charter 287 (Tri-Cities/Yakima), Cable One 466 (Lewiston) and Northland Cable 115 (Moses Lake & Sandpoint).

EWU Football - Page 2


Eagle player), Rich Rasmussen and Pete Kwiatkowski. Lake played for Eastern from 1995-98, and the four-year letterwinner had 160 tackles, including three sacks, in his 36-game career. Lake earned honorable mention All-Big Sky Conference honors as a strong safety during his injury-shortened (knee) senior season in 1998. As a junior in 1997 when Eastern won the Big Sky Conference title and a d v a n c e d to the NCAA Division I-AA Final Four, Lake had 66 tackles for the season (22 in the playoffs) and had his only career interception in Easterns thrilling 40-35 win at Montana. The 1997 football team he played on was inducted into the Eastern Athletics Hall of Fame in 2012. A 1995 graduate of North Central High School in Spokane (current Eagle players Jake Hoffman and Marcus Saugen also graduated from NC), Lake received his business administration degree from Eastern in 2000 and helped coach Eagle linebackers in the fall of 1999, then the secondary from 2000-2003. He has since gone on to coach at Washington (2004), Montana State (2005) and Boise State (2012-13) in the collegiate ranks, and Tampa Bay (2006-07, 2010-11) and Detroit (2008) in the NFL. Rasmussen was at EWU for 12 seasons from 1996-2007, receiving both his bachelors (1998) and masters degrees (2000) from EWU. Kwiatkowski was defensive line coach at EWU from 1998-99.

The UW-EWU matchup has been circled on the calendar for a long time by the family of 2013 Jerry Rice Award recipient Cooper Kupp. Coopers grandfather, Jake Kupp, was an offensive lineman for the University of Washington (1961-63, including the 1964 Rose Bowl) and was drafted in the ninth round of the 1964 NFL draft by the Dallas Cowboys. He played from 1964-75 as a guard with Dallas, the Washington Redskins, Atlanta Falcons and the New Orleans Saints. Named to the NFL All-Rookie team, he later was a five-time captain for the Saints. He was named to the franchises 25-year All-Time Team and was inducted into its Hall of Fame in 1991. Coopers great-uncle and Jakes younger brother, Jeff Kupp, lettered as an offensive lineman at Eastern from 1982-84 during EWUs transition from NAIA to the FCS (then known as I-AA). Coopers parents are Craig and Karin Kupp, who were both inducted into the Pacific Lutheran University Hall of Fame in 2003. Karin (formerly Karin Gilmer) was a soccer player and Craig played football. Craig, who graduated from Selah (Wash.) High School, was a fifth-round draft pick by the New York Giants in 1990 and played in 1991 for the Phoenix Cardinals and the Dallas Cowboys. And Karins father, Tom Gilmer, is also a member of the PLU Hall of Fame as a Lute quarterback and record-setting punter in the late 1950s. He is also in the Tacoma-Pierce County Sports Hall of Fame after also serving as the long-time football coach for Washington High School in Tacoma.

With his son set to celebrate a birthday in Seattle, 26-year-old Texas native Cory Mitchell is EWUs leading receiver after two games

opener under new head coach Chris Petersen.

Washington finished 9-4 overall and 5-4 in the Pac-12 Conference a year ago, and defeated BYU 31-16 in the Fight Hunger Bowl. The Eagles were 12-3 overall in 2013 after finishing a perfect 8-0 in Big Sky Conference play for the first time in school history.

They have a great football team and a great coaching staff, added Baldwin. We look forward to the challenge.

Official Social Media SitesTwitter: @ewuathletics, @CoachBBaldwin, @CooperKupp #GoEags, #BigSkyFB, #FCS Facebook: EWU Football, EWU Athletics Instagram: ewuathletics

PDF Link to Fact BookThe complete version of the 2014 EWU football fact

book may be found at: http://goeags.com/trads/ewas-factbooks.html

More Eagle Football Links and Headlines

EWU Football Web Page - http://goeags.com/sports/m-footbl/index EWU Football News & Notes - http://www.goeags.com/sports/m-footbl/2014-15/news EWU Coach and Player Interview Podcasts - http://www.goeags.com/radio_podcasts/radio_podcasts.html Link to Football Ticket & RV Parking Information: http://www.goeags.com/tickets Big Sky Conference Football - http://www.bigskyconf.com/index.aspx?tab=football&path=football Spokane Spokesman-Review EWU Football Page - http://www.spokesman.com/eagles 700 ESPN http://700espn.com The Sports Network (FCS Football) - http://www.sportsnetwork.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=sportsnetwork&page=cfoot2/indexpic.htm NCAA FCS Football - http://www.ncaa.com/sports/football/fcs NCAA Statistics (2013) - http://stats.ncaa.org/rankings?sport_code=MFB&division=12 College Sports Journal - http://www.college-sports-journal.com College Football Performance Awards http://www.collegefootballperformance.com College Sports Madness - http://www.collegesportsmadness.com/fcs-football

Eagle Football Storylines The matchup in Seattle is a homecoming road game for many

Eagles. Easterns current 98-man roster includes 71 players from the state of Washington (72 percent), and for much of its history as a member of Division I, the Eagles have dubbed themselves Washingtons Team. Of those 71 players, 53 are from the Puget Sound area, and another six are from Southwest Washington, just a short trip down Interstate 5 from Seattle.

The new coach for the Huskies is Chris Petersen, and among his assistants are former Eagle coaches Jimmy Lake (also a former

UNIVERSITY OFWASHINGTONHUSKIES

Chris Petersen LB Havoli Kikaha

Coach: Chris Petersen (UC Davis, 88)School/Career Record: First Season/ 93-12 (9th Season0)2013: 9-4/5-4 Pac-12 North Division (3rd)SID: Jeff Bechtold (206-685-7910/[email protected])Website: www.gohuskies.com

2014 ScheduleAug. 30 @ Hawaii W, 17-16Sept. 6 Eastern Washington Sept. 13 Illinois Sept. 20 Georgia StateSept. 27 StanfordOct. 11 @ California Oct. 18 @ OregonOct. 25 Arizona StateNov. 1 @ ColoradoNov. 8 UCLANov. 15 @ ArizonaNov. 22 Oregon StateNov. 29 @ Washington State Series History Washington 1, Eastern 02011 L 27-30 A



percentage. He is 58-22 in seven seasons for a school-record .725 winning percentage to currently rank seventh in the 50-year history of the Big Sky Conference. His .792 winning percentage in league games (38-10) is the best-ever by an Eastern head coach and currently ranks fifth all-time in the league. His 38 Big Sky victories are a school record, four better than the EWU head coach he previously served under, Paul Wulff (2000-2007). He won his 50th game overall and equaled Wulffs record for league victories in the 42-37 victory over Montana in 2013. Eastern has advanced at least to the semifinals of the FCS Playoffs in three of the last four years under Baldwin, the reigning two-time Big Sky Coach of the Year. He helped lead EWU to its third Big Sky title in four seasons with the schools first-ever unbeaten conference mark (8-0) in 2013. He is a 1990 graduate of Curtis High School in Tacoma, and received his bachelors degree from Central Washington in 1996.

In The Sports Network FCS top 25 poll released Sept. 1, North Dakota State found the formula back to the No. 1 spot after its 34-14 romp past FBS member Iowa State. The three-time defending champions received 93 first-place votes and 3,830 points, while preseason No. 1 EWU received 63 first-place votes and were just 26 total points behind. Four Eagle opponents in 2014 are ranked in this weeks top 25. Sam Houston State, a team Eastern defeated 56-35 on Aug. 23, is 15th. Montana is No. 4, Montana State is No. 20 and Northern Arizona is No. 25. Eastern, which has now been ranked in 31-consecutive polls, was No. 1 in the preseason poll the fourth time in five seasons Eastern has earned a No. 1 ranking by TSN. Eastern finished the 2010 season No. 1 and as NCAA Division I champion. Eastern also was ranked No. 1 during the 2011 and 2012 seasons. In this weeks coaches poll, the Bison and Eagles are again ranked 1-2, matching the preseason poll.

The Eagles have now been ranked in The Sports Network Poll 31-consecutive times, having entered 2014 with a streak of 29-straight. In finishing third in the 2013 season, it was the 11th time Eastern has finished the season nationally ranked, including seven times since 2004. The other seasons were in 1985, 1992, 1993, 1997, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010 and 2012.

with 17 catches for 196 yards. He caught a career-high 11 passes (11th-most in school history) for 123 yards and a pair of touchdowns against Montana Western, and a week earlier had six catches for 73 yards versus Sam Houston State. The older brother of former Eagle Bo Levi Mitchell (the Most Outstanding Player in the 2010 National Championship game and now with Calgary in the CFL), Cory is a 2006 graduate of Katy (Texas) High School. He resides in Cheney with his fiance, Atosha Granger, and their two sons Jhett who will turn three when EWU plays at Washington on Sept. 6 and Dash who will turn two in December.

A pair of Pac-12 transfers in the defensive backfield have combined for 14 tackles, two interceptions and five passes broken up after two games. Senior safety and UCLA transfer Tevin McDonald has 10 tackles, four passes broken up and an interception. Junior cornerback and Arizona State transfer Rashad Wadood has had four tackles, a PBU and a pick. McDonald broke up two passes against Montana Western, including one on fourth down that led to EWUs second touchdown in the 41-9 romp. A week earlier, McDonald had the play-of-the-game to help catapult EWU to a 56-35 win. After both teams had a pair of seven-point leads and with EWU nursing a 28-21 advantage, McDonald blitzed and deflected a pass up in the air. He then ran under it after it bounced off another player, and his interception gave EWU the ball at the SHSU 20-yard line. Eastern followed with TD to open the fourth quarter and give the Eagles some breathing room. I think Tevins play was probably the biggest play of the game, said Baldwin. It just had the feeling of a monster play. The defense showed the offense that they had their back.

Another six Eagles started their collegiate careers at Washington State University, including starting offensive tackle Jake Rodgers, starting defensive end Zackary Johnson, starting receiver Blair Bomber and punter Jake Miller.

Tacoma, Wash., native Beau Baldwin, the reigning two-time Big Sky Coach of the Year, is now No. 1 in school history and has moved up a notch this season in Big Sky Conference history for winning

Alma Mater: Central Washington 96Record at Eastern: 58-22, Seventh SeasonCareer Record: 68-25, Eighth SeasonsBig Sky Record: 38-10, Six SeasonsBest Time to Contact: Weekday MorningsAt This Number: 509.359.24562013 Records: 12-3/8-0 Big Sky Conf. (Outright Champ)All-Time Homecoming Record: 52-32-3Letterwinners Returning/Lost: 45 (22 offense/21

defense/1 punter/1 snapper)/25 (11 offense/13 defense/1 kicker)

Starters Returning: 11 (6 offense/5 defense)Starters Lost: 11 (5 offense/6 defense)Sports Information Director: Dave CookSID E-Mail: [email protected] Work Phone/Fax: 509.359.6334/359.2828SID Cell: 509.280.2502Roos Field Phone: 509.359.6351Website: WWW.GOEAGS.COMTwitter: @EWUAthletics, #GoEagsFacebook: EWU Football, EWU AthleticsInstagram: ewuathletics

Location - Founded: Cheney, Wash. - 1882Enrollment: 12,791Switchboard: 509.359.6200President: Dr. Mary CullinanNickname - Colors: Eagles - Red and WhiteAffiliation: NCAA Championship Subdivision (FCS)Conference: Big Sky ConferenceStadium: Roos Field (formerly Woodward Field)Capacity/Surface: 8,600/SprinturfAth. Phone: 509.359.2463/1.800.648.7697Athletic Director: Bill ChavesSenior Woman Administrator: Pamela ParksFaculty Representative: Laurie MorleyHead Athletic Trainer: Brian NortonFacilities Manager: Kerry PeaseEquipment Manager: Augie HernandezMarketing/Promotions: Kyle HoobBusiness Operations: Kara HoganTicket Manager: Kathryn OwenTickets Website: WWW.TICKETSWEST.COMTicket Off: 1.866.4GO.EAGS/509.359.6059Head Football Coach: Beau Baldwin

For More Information on Eastern Washington University Football . . . WWW.GOEAGS.COM

Be sure to visit that location for information on how to join theEWU Athletics e-mail list and receive scores via cell phone text service

2014 Big Sky Conference Football Standings Big Sky Conference All GamesTeam W L PCT PF PA W L PCT PF PAEastern Washington 0 0 ---- ---- ---- 2 0 1.000 97 44Sacramento State 0 0 ---- ---- ---- 1 0 1.000 49 13Northern Colorado 0 0 ---- ---- ---- 0 0 ---- ---- ----Cal Poly 0 0 ---- ---- ---- 0 1 .000 10 28Idaho State 0 0 ---- ---- ---- 0 1 .000 14 56Montana 0 0 ---- ---- ---- 0 1 .000 12 17Montana State 0 0 ---- ---- ---- 0 1 .000 10 37North Dakota 0 0 ---- ---- ---- 0 1 .000 10 42Northern Arizona 0 0 ---- ---- ---- 0 1 .000 7 38Portland State 0 0 ---- ---- ---- 0 1 .000 14 29Southern Utah 0 0 ---- ---- ---- 0 1 .000 19 28UC Davis 0 0 ---- ---- ---- 0 1 .000 0 45Weber State 0 0 ---- ---- ---- 0 1 .000 14 45

Saturday, Sept. 6 (Times Pacific): Sacramento State at Cal, 12:05; Eastern Washington at Washington, 12:05; Central Washington at Montana, 2:35; Cal Poly at South Dakota State, 4:05; Robert Morris at North Dakota, 4:05; Northern Arizona at Abilene Christian, 4:05; Idaho State at Utah State, 5:05; North Dakota State at Weber State, 5:05; Southern Utah at Southeastern Louisiana, 5:05; Fort Lewis at UC Davis, 6:05; Black Hills State at Montana State, 6:05; Northern Colorado at UNLV, 7:05; Western Oregon at Portland State, 7:15.



Teams Player of the Week honor on Sept. 1. He punted six times for a 49.3 average against Sam Houston State, including kicks of 64 (third-longest of his career and 10th in school history), 54 and 50 yards. He had three downed inside the SHSU 20-yard line, then in his next game both of his punts were downed inside the 20. His career average of 43.6 yards per punt is more than a full yard ahead of the record of 42.3 set by Jesse Nicassio from 2002-03, and is currently sixth in FCS history (he needs 11 more punts to meet the minimum of 150).

En route to winning the seventh ROOT SPORTS Big Sky Conference Offensive Player of the Week honor in his career, junior Vernon Adams Jr. was nearly perfect against Montana Western, completing 28-of-31 passes for 370 yards and five touchdowns in less than three quarters of action for a passing efficiency rating of 243.8. In the first half alone, Adams was 17-of-19 for 198 yards and three touchdowns. Adams nearly broke a Big Sky record with a 302.2 efficiency rating last Oct. 9 when he was 16-of-18 for 300 yards and four TD in a 54-29 romp over Montana State. His career rating of 176.1 is currently a school and Big Sky record and ranks second all-time in FCS.

In two games, Easterns offense is averaging 48.5 points and 603.5 yards of offense per game. The Eagles are now a perfect 11-of-11 in the red zone after going 4-of-4 versus the Montana Western and 7-of-7 against Sam Houston State. Eastern has yet to attempt a field goal. Easterns 583 yards of offense against the Bulldogs was the 23rd-most in school history, and its 624 yards against Sam Houston State was ninth.

Sophomore Kendrick Bourne already has four touchdown catches this season on eight receptions. He now has 15 career catches and six of them have gone for scores.

Eastern has outscored its opponent in the third quarter in 13-straight games, including both games this season and 12 of 15 games in the 2013 season. In its last 10 games, EWU has a 151-15 advantage in the third quarter. In those 10 games, EWU has allowed only third-quarter field goals to Idaho State on Nov. 2, South Dakota State on Dec. 7 and Jacksonville State on Dec. 14, then a TD by Montana Western on Aug. 30. Until the Bulldog TD, EWU hadnt allowed a third-quarter touchdown since Oct. 12 versus North Dakota.

Eastern Washington wore a gold OSO sticker on its helmets versus Sam Houston State out of remembrance of the 43 people who were killed in the massive mudslide in Oso, Washington, near Seattle on March 22. Eastern has a personal connection with the disaster through a 13-year-old, aspiring football player named Jojo, who was killed in the mudslide. Because of his death, his youth football team delayed a trip to Spokane for a tournament, but later visited and was greeted and comforted by head coach Beau Baldwin and 20 of his players. Two of Easterns players, sophomore offensive lineman Jerrod Jones and freshman redshirt long snapper Curtis Billen are both from Arlington, Wash., located near Oso. Among the survivors for Jovan Jojo Mangual are his father, Army Staff Sgt. Jose Mangual, his mother, Jonielle Spillers, and his brother, Jacob Spillers.

The Eagles passed for nearly 10,000 yards and 100 touchdowns in the 2013 and 2014 seasons combined 9,716 yards and 95 TDs to be exact.

With five TD tosses against Montana Western, junior Vernon Adams Jr. now has 84 touchdowns in his Eastern career, tying him with Erik Meyer (2002-05) for second in school history and eighth all-time in the Big Sky Conference. The school record is 96 (second in league history) set by Matt Nichols (2006-09). Adams now has 7,627 career yards, moving him from fifth to third in school history behind Meyer (10,261) and Nichols (12,616). Adams has had 14 performances of at least 300 yards in 29 career games.

Five true freshmen saw action in Easterns opener versus Sam Houston State on Aug. 23, then two more made their debuts a week later. They included wide receiver Terence Grady and tight end Conner Baumann on offense, and end Marcus Saugen, nose tackle Patiole Pesefea and cornerback Nzuzi Webster on defense. Defensive linemen Nick Foerstel and Dylan Donohue came off redshirt on Aug. 30 against Montana Western.

Walter Payton Award candidate Vernon Adams Jr. is now 22-4 as a starter at Eastern. His 20 victories entering the season represents the most back-to-back wins by a starting quarterback in school history (Bo Levi Mitchell had 19). One of the losses for the 2013 Payton Award runner-up was against Sam Houston State last year, and the other three were against Southern Utah in 2012 and Toledo and Towson in 2013.

Sixth-year senior Ronnie Hamlin began his pursuit of the school record for career tackles with six versus Sam Houston State. A foot injury kept him from the Montana Western game, and he now has a current career total of 367 tackles in 41 games (38 as a starter). The Buck Buchanan Award candidate is 32 from Greg Belzer (399 from 1997-00) and 65 away from record holder J.C. Sherritt (432 from 2007-10). Most importantly, he has helped lead the Eagles to a 30-11 record overall and 20-4 Big Sky Conference mark with a pair of league titles and two appearances in the semifinals of the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision Playoffs.

Sophomore Cooper Kupp also sat out the Montana Western game as he rested a sprained ankle. The Walter Payton Award candidate has had at least one TD reception in 15 of the 16 games he has played thus far in his career at EWU. He had at least one score in the first 14 games of his career to set a FCS record, but had the streak stopped in a 2013 loss in the semifinals of the FCS Playoffs. Now with 22 career touchdowns, he had 21 TD catches in 2013 to lead FCS as a redshirt freshman. The Jerry Rice Award winner has 100 career catches a TD for every 4.5 catches so far and averaged 18.2 yards per catch in 2013 (93-1691).

A foot injury kept him from playing versus Montana Western, but senior running back Quincy Forte has averaged 155.3 yards rushing in the last four games hes played after a 152-yard effort versus Sam Houston State. It was the sixth 100-yard rushing game of his career, including his third in four games. His 152-yard effort was his third-best output in 40 career games, and in the process moved him into 10th on EWUs career leaders list with 2,222 yards. His 1,208 yards in 2013 ranked eighth in school history and gave EWU a 1,000-yard rusher for the 12th time in the last 19 seasons (1995-2013).

Already Easterns leading career punter, senior Jake Miller has a 47.0 average in eight punts this season, with three of them at least 50 yards and five downed inside the opponent 20-yard line. As a result, he received his first ROOT SPORTS Big Sky Conference Special



Series Notes In the only other previous meeting versus the Eagles and Huskies,

a historic matchup came one play from being a memorable one for Eastern. The defending NCAA Division champions narrowly fell to Washington 30-27 on Sept. 3, 2011, despite Eagle quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell having the second-best passing performance in Eagle history with 473 yards. His potential game-winning pass was intercepted in the end zone with 29 ticks of the clock remaining in a game in which the Eagles outgained the Huskies 504-250 in total offense. A crowd of 58,088 witnessed the first-ever meeting -- the third-largest crowd to witness an Eastern game. Junior All-America receiver Brandon Kaufman had 10 catches for 140 yards, Nicholas Edwards had 12 grabs for 108 yards and a touchdown and Greg Herd had seven catches for 87 yards and a TD. Among current Eagles, Mario Brown rushed eight times for 30 yards and caught a pass for 15 yards, and Ronnie Hamlin had a team-leading eight tackles.

Since the early 1980s when it began the move to become a member of the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (in 1984), Eastern is now 9-22 all-time versus Football Bowl Subdivision teams. Against current Pac-12 Conference members, EWU now 1-7 (1-9 including losses to Washington State in 1907 and 1908) after a 49-46 upset of 25th-ranked Oregon State in 2013. Eastern has won two of its last four games versus FBS foes. A 35-17 win over Connecticut on Sept. 8, 2001, snapped a five-game losing streak versus FBS foes, then a 20-3 win at Idaho in 2012 snapped a 10-game skid.

Eastern has games against FBS foes scheduled for every year through 2019 when EWU will return to Seattle to play the UW. Next season, Eastern will play Oregon on Sept. 5, 2015, at Autzen Stadium in Eugene in the first-ever meeting between those two schools. The Eagles also have scheduled games against Washington State for Sept. 3, 2016 and Sept. 15, 2018. Eastern will play at Texas Tech on Sept. 2, 2017, and will return to Seattle on Aug. 31, 2019. Eastern hadnt played the Cougars since 1908 when the two schools met on Sept. 8, 2012, in a narrow, 24-20 WSU victory. The 2016 meeting will mark the sixth-straight year the Eagles will play a Pac-12 Conference opponent.

Upcoming Following EWUs two-game season-opening homestand, Eastern

wont return home again until taking on Idaho State on Oct. 4 on Hall of Fame Day at Eastern.

After the UW game, the Eagles close their non-conference schedule on Saturday, Sept. 20 against Montana State in Bozeman, Mont. As part of the leagues expansion in 2012, only Montana and Portland State will be on EWUs annual schedule, and the other six league games are played on a rotating basis with the other 10 Big Sky teams. Thus, the Eagles will play non-league games the next two years versus MSU, which finished the 2013 season 7-5 overall and 5-3 in the Big Sky. The Bobcats are scheduled to play in Cheney on Sept. 19, 2015, in the return game.

Easterns 2014 Big Sky schedule begins on Sept. 27 at UC Davis, and the teams home league opener is Oct. 4 versus Idaho State and former Eastern head coach Mike Kramer. Easterns other home league games are against Northern Colorado (Oct. 18), North Dakota (Nov. 1)

TEAM RANKINGS2014 TEAM RANKINGSThe Sports Network (9/1/14): 1. North Dakota State; 2. Eastern Washington; 4.

Montana; 9. Jacksonville State; 12. South Dakota State; 15. Sam Houston State; 20. Montana State; 22. Towson; 25. Northern Arizona.

FCS Coaches Poll (9/1/14): 1. North Dakota State; 2. Eastern Washington; 5. Montana; 9. Jacksonville State; 11. South Dakota State; 13. Sam Houston State; 23. Montana State; 19. Towson.

EWU in the 2014 Sports Network PollSept. 1: 2nd (NDSU #1, UM #4, SHSU #15, MSU #20, NAU #25). Preseason: 1st

(NDSU #2, UM #5, SHSU #17, MSU #18, NAU #23).

EWU in National Preseason Rankings1st (The Sports Network) . . . also #2 North Dakota State, #5 Montana, #6 Jackson-

ville State, #10 South Dakota State, #13 Towson, #17 Sam Houston State, #18 Montana State, #23 Northern Arizona.

2nd (Coaches) . . . also #1 North Dakota State, #5 Montana, #7 Towson, #8 Jackson-ville State, #10 South Dakota State, #14 Sam Houston State, #19 Montana State, #25 Northern Arizona.

1st (Sporting News) . . . also, #2 North Dakota State, #4 Jacksonville State, #10 Montana, #15 Towson, #16 Sam Houston State, #18 Montana State, #19 South Dakota State, #20 Northern Arizona, #24 Southern Utah.

1st (Lindys College Football) . . . also, #3 North Dakota State, #4 Montana, #6 South Dakota State, #14 Towson, #18 Sam Houston State, #19 Jacksonville State, #21 Montana State.

1st (Athlon College Football) . . . also, #2 North Dakota State, #6 Jacksonville State, #7 Montana, #10 Towson, #11 South Dakota State, #16 Montana State, #21 Sam Houston State.

1st (College Football Yearbook/Encyclopedia) . . . also #2 North Dakota State, #5 Montana, #8 Jacksonville State, #9 South Dakota State, #13 Towson, #18 Sam Houston State, #17 Montana State, #22 Northern Arizona, #27 Southern Utah.

EWU in 2014 Big Sky Preseason RankingsMedia Poll: 1. Eastern Washington (34 first-place votes) - 464 total votes; 2.

Montana (1) - 416; 3. Montana State (1) - 364; 4. Cal Poly - 329; 5. Northern Arizona - 328; 6. Southern Utah 299; 7. UC Davis - 228; 8. Portland State 227; 9. Sacramento State - 222; 10. Idaho State 124; 11. North Dakota - 121; 12. Weber State - 103; 13. Northern Colorado - 61.

Coaches Poll: 1. Eastern Washington (12) - 144; 2. Montana (1) 130; 3. Montana State 111; 4. Cal Poly - 108; 5. Northern Arizona - 100; 6. Southern Utah 89; 7. Sacramento State - 79; 8. Portland State 71; 9. UC Davis - 66; 10. North Dakota - 34; 11. Weber State - 30; 12. Idaho State 28; 13. Northern Colorado - 23.

EWU in the 2013 Sports Network PollFinal: 3rd (NDSU #1, Towson #2, UM #4, NAU #8, MSU #16, SUU #22). Nov. 25: 3rd

(NDSU #1, Eastern Illinois #2, UM #4, NAU #8, MSU #16, SUU #22). Nov. 18: 3rd (NDSU #1, Eastern Illinois #2, UM #5, NAU #10, MSU #13, SUU #20). Nov. 11: 3rd (NDSU #1, Eastern Illinois #2, UM #7, MSU #8, NAU #12). Nov. 4: 3rd (NDSU #1, Eastern Illinois #2, MSU #4, UM #10, NAU #14). Oct. 28: 3rd (NDSU #1, Eastern Illinois #2, MSU #5, UM #12, NAU #14). Oct. 21: 3rd (NDSU #1, Eastern Illinois #2, MSU #5, UM #10, NAU #16). Oct. 14: 4th (NDSU #1, SHSU #2, MSU #5, UM #10, NAU #19). Oct. 7: 6th (NDSU #1, SHSU #2, MSU #7, UM #11, NAU #19). Sept. 30: 6th (NDSU #1, SHSU #2, MSU #8, UM #10, NAU #15, CP #18). Sept. 23: 2nd (NDSU #1, SHSU #4, UM #7, MSU #11, CP #18, NAU #25). Sept. 16: 2nd (NDSU #1, MSU #3, SHSU #5, UM #9, CP #18, NAU #25). Sept. 9: 2nd (NDSU #1, MSU #3, SHSU #5, UM #11, CP #14, NAU #25). Sept. 2: 2nd (NDSU #1, MSU #3, SHSU #4, CP #12, UM #13, NAU #22). Preseason: 4th (NDSU #1, MSU #2, SHSU #3, CP #14, NAU #18, UM #20).



2014 HONORSREGULAR SEASON#3 - Vernon Adams Jr.QB - 6-0 - 200 - Jr. - 2L* - Pasadena, Calif. (Alemany HS 11) ROOT SPORTS Big Sky Conference Player of the Week (9/1/14 - 672 yards, 9 TD in 2-0 start) College Sports Madness Big Sky Player of the Week (9/1/14 - 672 yards, 9 TD in 2-0 start)

#48 - Jake MillerP - 6-5 - 225 - Sr. - 3L - Spokane, Wash. (Central Val. HS 10 / WSU) ROOT SPORTS Big Sky Conf. Player of the Week (9/1/14 - 47.0 avg. in 8 punts, long of 64)

PRESEASON#3 - Vernon Adams Jr.QB - 6-0 - 200 - Jr. - 2L* - Pasadena, Calif. (Alemany HS 11) The Sports Network Walter Payton Award Watch List

College Football Performance Awards Quarterback Award Watch List College Sports Madness Preseason FCS Player of the Year

College Football Yearbook/Enclyclopedia Payton Award Favorite The Sports Network Preseason All-America (First Team)

Sporting News College Football Yearbook Preseason All-America (First Team) Lindys College Football Preseason All-America (First Team) Athlon College Football Preseason All-America (First Team) College Sports Madness Preseason All-America (First Team)

College Football Yearbook/Enclyclopedia FCS Starting Lineup A-A Team Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (selected by panel of media representatives)

College Sports Madness Preseason Big Sky Offensive Player of the Year Beyond Sports Network Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (First Team) College Sports Madness Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (First Team)

#10 - Cooper KuppWR - 6-2 - 195 - So. - 1L* - Yakima, Wash. (Davis HS 12) The Sports Network Walter Payton Award Watch List

College Football Performance Awards Wide Receiver Award Watch List The Sports Network Preseason All-America (First Team) Sporting News College Football Yearbook Preseason All-America (First Team) Lindys College Football Preseason All-America (First Team) Athlon College Football Preseason All-America (First Team) College Sports Madness Preseason All-America (First Team)

College Football Yearbook/Enclyclopedia FCS Starting Lineup A-A Team Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (selected by panel of media representatives)

Beyond Sports Network Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (First Team) College Sports Madness Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (First Team)

#39 - Ronnie HamlinLB - 6-2 - 235 - Sr. - 3L* - Lacey, Wash. (Timberline HS 09) The Sports Network Buck Buchanan Award Watch List

College Football Performance Awards Linebacker Award Watch List College Developmental FB League Preseason All-America (First Team/North) The Sports Network Preseason All-America (Second Team)

College Sports Madness Preseason All-America (Third Team) Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (selected by panel of media representatives)

Beyond Sports Network Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (First Team) College Sports Madness Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (First Team)

#90 - Evan DayDL - 6-3 - 245 - Sr. - 3L* - Sammamish, Wash. (Skyline HS 10) College Football Performance Awards Defensive Lineman Award Watch List

College Developmental FB League Preseason All-America (Hon. Mention) Beyond Sports Network Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (First Team)

College Sports Madness Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (First Team)

#78 - Clay DeBordOL - 6-6 - 305 - Jr. - 2L* - Asotin, Wash. (Asotin HS 11) College Sports Madness Preseason All-America (Second Team) The Sports Network Preseason All-America (Third Team)

Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (selected by panel of media representatives) Beyond Sports Network Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (First Team) College Sports Madness Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (First Team)

and Montana (Nov. 8). Other road games are at Southern Utah (Oct. 11), Northern Arizona (Oct. 25) and Portland State (Nov. 21).

2014 Preseason Honors Five seniors will serve as co-captains for the 2014 football season,

as selected by a team vote during preseason practices. They include linebacker Ronnie Hamlin, who was also a captain last season. The others are safety Tevin McDonald, defensive lineman Dylan Zylstra, center Jase Butorac and wide receiver Cory Mitchell. Three of the captains are from the state of Washington Hamlin is a 2009 graduate of Timberline High School in Lacey, Wash.; Zylstra graduated from Kentridge HS in Kent, Wash., in 2010 and Butorac is a 2010 graduate of Skyline High School in Sammamish, Wash. McDonald is from Fresno, Calif., and Mitchell is from Katy, Texas.

Well-known already in The Sports Network awards circles, junior quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. and sophomore Cooper Kupp are on the initial Watch List for the Walter Payton Award presented annually by TSN to the top player in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision. Adams was the 2013 runner-up for the Payton Award while Kupp was a unanimous winner of the Jerry Rice Award given by TSN to the top freshman in FCS. They join a list of 20 players on the initial Watch List. Adams finished with 446 votes last season, 130 behind the 576 of winner Jimmy Garoppolo of Eastern Illinois, who was drafted in the second round by the New England Patriots in the 2014 NFL Draft (62nd pick overall). Adams was the only non-senior in the top four, with fifth-place finisher Michael Nebrich of Fordham finishing with 106 votes. Nebrich is on the initial Watch List as well.

In addition, senior linebacker Ronnie Hamlin was selected as one of 20 NCAA Football Championship Subdivision players selected to the Buck Buchanan Award Watch List. The Buchanan Award is presented annually by The Sports Network to the top defensive player in FCS. Hamlin was an All-American the past two seasons for the Eagles, and was selected to the 2014 TSN preseason All-America squad. In 2013, he finished 12th in the voting for the Buchanan Award.

Five players the most among teams represented were selected to The Sports Network NCAA Football Championship Subdivision Preseason All-America team announced July 1. Junior quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. and sophomore wide receiver Cooper Kupp were selected to the first team, while senior linebacker Ronnie Hamlin was picked for the second team on defense. Third team selections included senior running back Quincy Forte and junior offensive tackle Clay DeBord. Adams and Kupp earned first team recognition on six different preseason All-America squads.

A year after going an unblemished 8-0 in the Big Sky Conference for the first time in school history, the Eagles have been selected by both the media and coaches to win a third-straight title. Eastern earned 34 of the 36 first-place votes in the media poll, and 11 of 12 in the coaches poll. Eastern has never won three-straight Big Sky titles, but has won a total of seven since joining the league in 1987.

Junior quarterback Vernon Adams Jr., was selected along with five other Eagles to the 2014 preseason All-Big Sky Conference team released July 14 at the Big Sky Conference Summer Football Kickoff in Park City, Utah. Eastern garnered six of the 30 selections, and Adams was selected to repeat as the leagues offensive MVP. Other Eagles honored included sophomore wide receiver Cooper Kupp, junior offensive tackle Clay DeBord, senior linebacker Ronnie Hamlin, senior safety Tevin McDonald and senior defensive tackle Dylan Zylstra. Adams enters his junior season with a near-perfect Big Sky mark of 15-1 as a starter.



#22 - Quincy ForteRB - 5-11 - 200 - Sr. - 3L - Fairfield, Calif. (Vacaville HS 11) The Sports Network Preseason All-America (Third Team) College Sports Madness Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (Third Team)

#6 - Cory MitchellWR - 6-2 - 195 - Sr. - 3L* - Katy, Texas (Katy HS 06) College Developmental FB League Preseason All-America (First Team/North)

College Sports Madness Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (Third Team)

#48 - Jake MillerP - 6-5 - 225 - Sr. - 3L - Spokane, Wash. (Central Val. HS 10 / WSU) College Football Performance Awards Punter Award Watch List

#1 - Shaq HillWR - 5-10 - 180 - Jr. - 2L* - Stockton, Calif. (Brookside Chr. HS 11) College Football Performance Awards Kickoff Returner Award Watch List

College Sports Madness Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (Second Team)

#7 - Tevin McDonaldDB - 5-11 - 200 - Sr. - 1L/TR* - Fresno, Calif. (Edison HS 10 / UCLA) Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (selected by panel of media representatives)

Beyond Sports Network Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (First Team)

#57 - Dylan ZylstraDT - 6-4 - 270 - Sr. - 3L* - Kent, Wash. (Kentridge HS 10)

Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (selected by panel of media representatives) College Sports Madness Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (First Team)

#47 - Cody McCarthyLB - 6-1 - 230 - Sr. - 3L - Boise, Idaho (Bishop Kelly HS 11) College Sports Madness Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (Second Team)

#79 - Cassidy CurtisOT - 6-7 - 295 - Jr. - 2L* - Denver, Colo. (Cherry Creek HS 11) College Sports Madness Preseason All-Big Sky Conference (Second Team)

HONORS IN 2013 (by returning players)

#3 - Vernon AdamsFCS National Performer of the Year (College Football Performance Awards)Runner-up for the Walter Payton Award Given to Top Player in FCSFirst Team All-America (College Sporting News Fabulous 50)First Team All-America (College Sports Journal)First Team All-America (Beyond Sports Network)Second Team All-America (The Sports Network)Second Team All-America (Associated Press)Second Team All-America (College Sports Madness)Second Team All-America (Phil Steele Publications)Finalist for Geico Play of the Year (game-winning TD versus Oregon State)Big Sky Conference Offensive Player of the YearFirst Team All-Big Sky Conf. (unanimous, first-team vote on all 12 ballots)

#10 - Cooper KuppWinner of Jerry Rice Award Given to Top Freshman in FCSFCS Wide Receiver Award (College Football Performance Awards)FCS Freshman of the Year on Fabulous 50 (College Sporting News)FCS Freshman of the Year (College Sports Journal)FCS Freshman of the Year (College Sports Madness)FCS Freshman of the Year (Phil Steele Publications)First Team All-America (American Football Coaches Association)First Team All-America (The Sports Network)First Team All-America (Associated Press)First Team All-America (College Sporting News Fabulous 50)First Team All-America (College Sports Journal) First Team All-America (Walter Camp Football Foundation)

A total of seven players have been named to the 2014 College Football Performance Awards (CFPA) Watch List for their respective positions heading into the 2014 season. Most recently, punter Jake Miller and kickoff returner and all-purpose performer Shaq Hill were named to watch lists. Previously, running back Quincy Forte, wide receiver Cooper Kupp, defensive end Evan Day, linebacker Ronnie Hamlin and quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. were listed as candidates for CFPA honors. Five Eagles have previously earned CFPA honors: Adams (2013 CFPA FCS National Performer of the Year Trophy), Kupp (2013 CFPA FCS Wide Receiver Award), Brandon Kaufman (2012 CFPA FCS Wide Receiver Award), Bo Levi Mitchell (2011 CFPA FCS Elite Quarterback Award) and Taiwan Jones (2010 CFPA FCS Running Back Award).

A total of 13 Eagles earned some sort of preseason recognition in 2014 from various preseason magazines and media outlets.

Career StartsDefense (143 starts by 16 players): Ronnie Hamlin 38, Cody McCarthy 22, Evan Day 17, Miquiyah Zamora 11, Tevin McDonald 10, Jordan Tonani 8, Todd Raynes 8, Dylan Zylstra 4, Miles Weatheroy 2, Zackary Johnson 3, Frank Cange 3, Matthew Sommer 2, Jake Hoffman 2, Samson Ebukam 2, Zach Bruce 1, Jordan Talley 10 (1 on defense and 9 on offense).

Offense (156 starts by 16 players): Clay DeBord 29, Vernon Adams Jr. 26, Quincy Forte 18, Cooper Kupp 16, Cory Mitchell 15, Cassidy Curtis 10, Jake Withnell 8, Mario Brown 7, Shaq Hill 6, Jake Rodgers 6, T.J. Boatright 3, Jase Butorac 3, Zach Wimberly 3, Jabari Wilson 2, Aaron Neary 2, Thomas Gomez 2.

Recent Game RecapBig first halves for senior running back Mario Brown and

junior quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. helped the Eagles open a 27-0 lead and the Eagles went on to a 41-9 victory over NAIA member Montana Western Aug. 30 at Roos Field in Cheney, Wash.

Eastern warmed-up for a Sept. 6 meeting at Washington by rolling up 583 yards of offense, including 291 in the first half. In leading Eastern to a 41-9 lead in the third quarter, Adams (370 passing, eight rushing) and Brown (83 rushing) had accounted for 461 of EWUs 467 yards to that point.

The Eagles scored the first four times they had the ball, and held the Bulldogs scoreless on their first four. The resulting 27-0 lead helped eventually result in Easterns bench to get significant playing time, plus lessened the effect of four Eagle starters who missed the game for precautionary reasons because of injuries.

The Eagle defense allowed just two scores on 13 Montana Western possessions, and forced three turnovers (interceptions by Rashad Wadood and Isaiah Jenkins, and a fumble forced by Miquiyah Zamora and recovered by Todd Raynes) The offense scored the first four times they had the ball, and scored on six of 12 possessions with three lost fumbles. Montana Western was 2-of-14 on third down.

The win is good because we can come back 2-0 knowing we have a long way to go, said Eastern head coach Beau Baldwin, who wasnt pleased with the teams sloppiness that included three lost fumbles and inconsistency.



First Team All-America (College Sports Madness)First Team All-America (Beyond Sports Network)First Team All-America (Phil Steele Publications)First Team Freshman All-America (College Sports Journal)First Team Freshman All-America (Phil Steele Publications)Big Sky Conference Freshman of the YearFirst Team All-Big Sky Conf. (unanimous, first-team vote on all 12 ballots)

#39 - Ronnie Hamlin12th in Voting for the Buck Buchanan Award Given to Top Def. Player in FCSSecond Team All-America (College Sports Madness)Second Team All-Big Sky ConferenceFCS Athletics Directors Association (FCS ADA) Academic All-Star Team Big Sky Conference All-Academic (technology major)

#91 - Samson EbukamSecond Team Freshman All-America (College Sports Journal)Second Team Freshman All-America (Phil Steele Publications)Big Sky Conference All-Academic (major undeclared)

#78 - Clay DeBordSecond Team All-Big Sky Conference

#22 - Quincy Forte Third Team All-Big Sky Conference

#7 - Tevin McDonaldThird Team All-Big Sky Conference

#1 - Shaq HillHonorable Mention All-Big Sky Conference (wide receiver)

#6 - Cory MitchellHonorable Mention All-Big Sky Conference

#79 - Cassidy CurtisHonorable Mention All-Big Sky Conference

#57 - Dylan ZylstraHonorable Mention All-Big Sky Conference

#90 - Evan DayHonorable Mention All-Big Sky Conference

#47 - Cody McCarthyHonorable Mention All-Big Sky Conference

Beau BaldwinBig Sky Conference Coach of the YearOn Voting List for the Eddie Robinson Award Given to Top Coach in FCS

Other Returning Big Sky All-Academic SelectionsBlair Bomber - Lynden, Wa. / Lynden HS 10 / WSU - Sr. - Interdisciplinary StudiesJase Butorac - Sammamish, Wash. / Skyline HS 10 - Sr. - EconomicsTerry Jackson II - Sacramento, Calif. / Bella Vista HS 11 - Jr. - MarketingJake Miller - Spokane, Wash. / Central Valley HS 10 & Wash. St. - Sr. - FinanceTodd Raynes - Kenmore, Wash. / Inglemoor HS 11 - Jr. - Mechanical EngineeringMatthew Sommer - Salem, Ore. / West Salem HS 13 - So. - UndeclaredJordan Talley - Portland, Ore. / Jesuit HS 11 - Jr. - ChemistryMiles Weatheroy - Portland, Ore. / Jesuit HS 11 - Jr. - ManagementZach Wimberly - Tumwater, Wash. / Tumwater HS 12 - So. - UndeclaredJake Withnell - Salem, Ore. / South Salem HS 11 - Jr. - Business Administration

Quoting Beau BaldwinOn Montana Western Win: Honestly, it just had a lot

of sloppiness. I give Montana Western credit, but there were unforced errors where we have to be sharper. It will be a gut check for us next week. We have a long way to go if we want to go to Seattle and compete.

On Second-Half Versus Sam Houston State: Our feeling is that no matter what has happened in the first two quarters -- whether we are up, down or tied -- we are going to make adjustments and be the better team in the third quarter. Then we want to work to finish well in the fourth. Theyve carried over a lot of the success accomplishing that last year. Im proud of our team for making those adjustments and playing a sounder game of football in the second half. If you take away a couple of big plays, I thought our defense played really well. We always have things we can work on in all three facets of the game.

On Jordan West Entering SHSU Game and Throwing TD Pass: Thats kind of what it was like last year with Anthony Vitto. At Oregon State he jumped in for plays here and there, and this year it was Jordan. He and Coop are really good friends, so we figured they might have a connection in them. We trust Jordan, I have no doubt in my mind. I wouldnt change anything if all of the sudden Jordan had to take over the offense. We werent going to just run it when he went in there. He did a great job, executed and finished that drive. It was an important touchdown at that time.

On 185 Plays by EWU & SHSU: It was one of those games where you are going to have a lot of possessions because of the style they play. There will be other games where we have 450 yards and 38 points, and we actually click even better. The numbers are a little inflated we didnt play as good as the numbers, and we know that. But what I like is that we still made enough plays to not let the game get away from us and then we finished well in the end. We played better in the third and fourth quarters than we did in the first half.

On Rashad Wadood: Hes (acclimated) extremely well. I knew he could play, but the things I love the most is his character, his personality and his family. Since hes been here hes exceeded my expectations on how hungry he is. He is the type of transfers we get here. We are very selective in our transfers and we want to make sure they are a great fit once they get here.

On Return of Ronnie Hamlin: Hes a special player. Its great to have him back from a talent standpoint and a leadership standpoint as a team captain. He brings so much to our program on and off the field 365 days a year and he does things right. Its neat to see a decision like this made for such a quality player and person like Ronnie.

On Hamlins 2010 & 2011 Injuries: It was tough on Ronnie. We were thinking he could play right away, and then all of the sudden he was injured. We knew he would fight through it, but a year later he was injured again. It was a challenge not so much for us but more so for him. That injury is tough to go through once, but to go through it a second time can create some doubts in the heads of a lot of players. It was back-to-back years with the same injury, and a long rehabilitation process. But that was a credit to



his mental toughness and his desire to play football, be a student and graduate from Eastern. He just kept grinding through it the second time and never felt sorry for himself. He went out and attacked it.

On Running Backs: We have four or five players we can rely on, and thats a great problem to have. Thats tough sometimes for those players in that running back group they all want to be the starter and they all have the ability to potentially get a lot of carries. But it keeps the competition alive and keeps us fresh at that position no matter where we are in the season. We feel very confident with all those players that they will get the job done.

Injury Report Junior cornerback Frank Cange (knee) was lost for the season

and will need surgery after getting injured versus Montana Western. Defensive lineman Jordan Pulu (elbow) missed the Montana Western game and is also expected to miss this weeks game as well. Running back Jabari Wilson (hamstring) hasnt played yet, but he and five other Eagles who sat out the Montana Western game for precautionary reasons are listed as questionable by head coach Beau Baldwin for this week -- linebacker Ronnie Hamlin (ankle), wide receiver Cooper Kupp (ankle), center Jase Butorac (ankle), running back Quincy Forte (knee) and safety Jordan Tonani (knee).

The Eagles lost two projected starters to knee injuries and subsequent surgery in the spring. Returning All-Big Sky Conference defensive end Evan Day isnt expected back until late this season. Cornerback Dlondo Tucker, who saw action in 2013 as a true freshman, suffered his injury following the end of spring practices and will redshirt.

Three players are returning from season-ending injuries suffered a year ago. Safety Tevin McDonald was lost for the season with a broken fibula suffered against Idaho State that required surgery. Defensive end John Goldwire did not play in 2013 because of a severe case of Rhabdomyolysis (rhabdomyolysis), a condition in which damaged skeletal muscle breaks down rapidly and releases potentially damaging products into the bloodstream. In Goldwires case, it affected his kidneys. Before the season began, freshman All-America safety and Ferris HS graduate Jordan Tonani began surgical treatment for a hip ailment that cost him the 2013 season. Tonanis painful hip injury was called hip joint acetabular impingement, and the ailment requires surgery to both hips with six months of rehabilitation required for each. His first surgery on his left hip took place on July 29, and also included a labral tear that was repaired. He had the second surgery on his right hip on Sept. 16.

Team Notes The Eagles are 26-4 all-time at The Inferno, with two of the losses

coming the past two seasons in the semifinals of the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision Playoffs. One of those was a 45-42 loss to Sam Houston State in 2012 when EWU rallied from a 35-0 halftime deficit to nearly pull off an improbable comeback.

Eastern has had sellouts in its last six games, including both games this season. Easterns crowds of 10,310 for the Sam Houston State game and 9,116 for Montana Western were the 17th and 18th sellouts (crowd of 8,600+) at Roos Field in school history.

EWUs Season-Ending National FCS/I-AA Rankings

1985 11th (NCAA Division I-AA Poll)1992 14th (NCAA Division I-AA Poll)1993 20th (The Sports Network)1997 4th (The Sports Network) & 4th (ESPN/USA Today)2004 8th (The Sports Network) & 7th (ESPN/USA Today)2005 13th (The Sports Network) & 13th (ESPN/USA Today)2007 8th (The Sports Network) & 8th (Coaches)2009 13th (The Sports Network) & 13th (Coaches)2010 1st (The Sports Network) & 1st (Coaches)2012 4th (The Sports Network) & 4th (Coaches)2013 - 3rd (The Sports Network) & 3rd (Coaches)

FCS vs. FBS Ranked TeamsEasterns 49-46 victory at No. 25 Oregon State on Aug. 31, 2013, was just the fourth time since the division was created in 1978 that a FCS (formerly known as I-AA) team defeated a ranked FBS opponent. Here are the four times that feat has occurred.

1983 - Cincinnati (Ohio) def. #20 Penn State 14-32007 - Appalachian State def. #5 Michigan 34-32

2010 - James Madison def. #13 Virginia Tech 21-162013 - Eastern Washington def. #25 Oregon State 49-46

EAGLES VS. FBSSince the early 1980s when it began the move to become a member of the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (in 1984), Eastern is now 9-22 all-time versus Football Bowl Subdivision teams. Against current Pac-12 Conference members, EWU now 1-7 (1-9 including losses to Washington State in 1907 and 1908) after a 49-46 upset of 25th-ranked Oregon State in 2013. Eastern has won two of its last four games versus FBS foes. A 35-17 win over Connecticut on Sept. 8, 2001, snapped a five-game losing streak versus FBS foes, then a 20-3 win at Idaho in 2012 snapped a 10-game skid. Here is Easterns complete list of games versus FBS members since 1983.

Year - Opponent - Result1983 - Cal State-Long Beach - W, 20-171985 - at Cal State-Long Beach - W, 30-231986 - at Cal State-Long Beach - L, 34-351990 - at #10 Houston - L, 21-841994 - at Utah State - W, 49-311996 - at Boise State - W, 27-211996 - at Idaho - L, 27-371997 - Idaho - W, 24-211998 - at Idaho - L, 14-311999 - Idaho - L, 21-481999 - at Boise State - L, 7-412000 - at Oregon State - L, 19-212000 - at Boise State - L, 23-412001 - at Connecticut - W, 35-172002 - at Arizona State - L, 2-382003 - at San Diego State - L, 9-192003 - at Idaho - W, 8-52004 - at Air Force - L, 20-422005 - at San Jose State - L, 21-352006 - at Oregon State - L, 17-562006 - at #6 West Virginia - L, 3-522007 - at Brigham Young - L, 7-422008 - at #12 Texas Tech - L, 24-492008 - at Colorado - L, 24-312009 - at #10 California - L, 7-592010 - at Nevada - L, 24-492011 - at Washington - L, 27-302012 - at Idaho - W, 20-32012 - at Washington State - L, 20-242013 - at #25 Oregon State - W, 49-462013 - at Toledo - L, 21-332014 - at Washington (9/6/14)2015 - at Oregon (9/5/15)2016 - at Washington State (9/3/16)2017 - at Texas Tech (9/2/17)2018 - at Washington State2019 - at Washington (8/31/19)



Several not so well-known Eagles made the most of their increased opportunities versus Sam Houston State. Senior receiver Blair Bomber scored the second and third touchdowns of his career, and sophomore tight end Zach Wimberly had a TD on his first career rushing attempt. In addition, sophomore Jordan West had a TD pass on his first career passing attempt in his first career game when he replaced Vernon Adams Jr., who had to come out of the game to get his eye guard removed. Sophomore Jalen Moore scored the first two touchdowns of his career, and sophomore wide receiver Kendrick Bourne also had a pair of scores to double his TD output as a freshman in 2013. Six of Easterns eight touchdowns scored versus SHSU were by sophomores.

The Eagles had only two players on offense (G Aaron Neary, G Thomas Gomez) and three on defense (E Samson Ebukam, NT Matthew Sommer, CB Jake Hoffman) make the first starts of their careers against Sam Houston State. In addition, Roldan Alcobendas made his debut as EWUs kicker. Of those six players, only Hoffman and Alcobendas both redshirt freshmen made their collegiate football debuts. Ebukam had seven tackles with a pair of sacks in his starting debut.

In all, Easterns starting offensive lineup in the opener versus Sam Houston State included four seniors, five juniors and a pair of sophomores; the starting defense included five seniors, three juniors, two sophomores and a redshirt freshman. A total of 14 offensive players entered 2014 with starting experience totaling 134 starts, while 13 returning defensive players accounted for 121 starts.

Eastern tied a school record in its 56-35 victory over Sam Houston State when the Eagles had 100 offensive plays, equaling the 100 Eastern had in a 2005 romp over Northern Arizona. The EWU-SHSU game featured two up-tempo teams who combined for 185 plays and 1,166 yards, 60 first downs and 91 points. In the 42-14 road win in 2005, Eastern had 583 yards of offense compared to just 185 on 40 plays for the Lumberjacks. The EWU record for most combined plays in a game is 189 in 2009 when the Eagles had 99 and Stephen F. Austin had 90 in the FCS Playoffs. The 189 total plays yielded 1,158 yards of offense.

The Eagles finished with their ninth-most yards in school history in the win over SHSU, just one behind the 625 Eastern had against Oregon State in its opener in 2013. A 2-yard loss on a kneel-down on the final play of the EWU-SHSU game kept the Eagles from exceeding that total.

The 56 total points scored versus Sam Houston State on Aug. 23 equaled the third-most for the Eagles against an FCS opponent, and were the most since beating Cal Poly 61-7 in 1994. Tied at halftime 21-all, Eastern out-scored the Bearkats 35-14 in the second half. The Eagles had 282 yards of offense in the half and the EWU defense had two sacks and intercepted the Bearkats twice.

In an announcement made Aug. 8, Eastern Washington and North Dakota State the only NCAA Football Championship Subdivision teams to win a national title since 2009 will play a home-and-home series with each other starting in 2016. The Bison and Eagles will play each other in Fargo on Sept. 10, 2016, then play at The Inferno in Cheney, Wash., on Sept. 16, 2017. Eastern won the 2010 title, including an overtime victory over the Bison in the quarterfinals, but NDSU has won every playoff game since en route to titles in 2011, 2012 and 2013. Although the Eagles have advanced to the semifinals of the playoffs in each of the last two seasons, theyve fallen short of facing the Bison in the title tilt.

In yet another schedule announcement, the Eagles announced on July 29 that they will make a second trip to play at Texas Tech on Sept. 2, 2017. Eastern played Texas Tech on Aug. 30, 2008, in the EWU head coaching debut of Beau Baldwin. Eastern lost that game 49-24 to the Red Raiders, who were coached by current Washington State University head coach Mike Leach. The Eagles would go on and finish 6-5 that season, while Texas Tech

PLAYOFF HISTORY2013 Towson L, 31-35 (Semifinals/Cheney)2013 Jacksonville State W, 35-24 (Quarterfinals/Cheney)2013 South Dakota State W, 41-17 (Second Round/Cheney)2012 Sam Houston State L, 42-45 (Semifinals/Cheney)2012 Illinois State W, 51-35 (Quarterfinals/Cheney)2012 Wagner W, 29-19 (Second Round/Cheney)2010 - Delaware - W, 20-19 (Championship/Frisco, Texas)2010 - Villanova - W, 41-31 (Semifinals/Cheney)2010 - North Dakota State - W, 38-31 in OT (Quarterfinals/Cheney)2010 - Southeast Missouri State - W, 37-17 (Second Round/Cheney)2009 - at Stephen F. Austin - L, 33-44 (First Round)2007 - at Appalachian State - L, 35-38 (Quarterfinals)2007 - at McNeese State - W, 44-15 (First Round)2005 - at Northern Iowa - L, 38-41 (First Round)2004 - Sam Houston State - L, 34-35 (Quarterfinals/Cheney)2004 - at Southern Illinois - W, 35-31 (First Round)1997 - Youngstown State - L, 14-25 (Semifinals/Spokane)1997 - Western Kentucky - W, 38-21 (Quarterfinals/Spokane)1997 - Northwestern State - W, 40-10 (First Round/Spokane)1992 - at Northern Iowa - L, 14-17 (First Round)1985 - at Northern Iowa - L, 14-17 (Quarterfinals)1985 - at Idaho - W, 42-38 (First Round)

* Eastern made its 10th appearance in the playoffs in 2013, becom-

ing the 16th team in FCS to have 10 or more appearances. The other appearances for the Eagles came in 1985, 1992, 1997, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010 and 2012. With a 6-5 record dur-ing an injury-ravaged season in 2011, Eastern fell a victory shy of making its first back-to-back-to-back appearances.

* Eastern has had seven playoff berths in a 10-year span (2004-13), ranking the Eagles as one of only four schools among 122 in FCS to accomplish that feat. The only other four teams to have qualified seven of the last 10 years are Appalachian State (2005-06-07-08-09-10-11-12, not eligible in 13), Montana (2004-05-06-07-08-09-11-13) and New Hampshire (2004-05-06-07-08-09-10-11-12-13).

* The Eagles have had four appearances in the last five years (2009-13), with only New Hampshire (2009-10-11-12-13), North Dakota State (2010-11-12-13) and Appalachian State (2009-10-11-12, not eligible in 13) also currently on that list.

* The Eagles have a 13-9 record in their 10 playoff appearances (1985, 1992, 1997, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013) to rank 10th in FCS history for wins and ninth in winning percent-age (.591). Eastern has now advanced to the semifinals in the FCS Playoffs four times (1997, 2010, 2012), and has won its opener seven times (1985, 1997, 2004, 2007, 2010, 2012, 2013). 2010 was EWUs first appearance in the championship game. Here is a complete list of EWUs FCS playoff games (EWU received first-round byes in 2010, 2012 and 2013; the playoffs were expanded to 20 teams in 2010 and to 24 teams in 2013):



finished 11-2 and shared the Big 12 title with Oklahoma and Texas. In 2013, Texas Tech finished 8-5 overall and 4-5 in the Big 12 in Kliff Kingsburys first season as head coach. The Red Raiders closed the season by upsetting No. 14 Arizona State 37-23 in the Holiday Bowl. Texas Tech had the second-best passing offense in FBS in 2013, averaging 392.8 yards per game (Fresno State led with an average of 394.8 per game). Eastern ranked fourth in FCS with an average of 349.8 passing yards per game.

Cornerback Rashad Wadood, Easterns second Pac-12 Conference transfer in as many seasons, joined the Eagle program during the summer. The Arizona State University transfer and Long Beach, Calif., native played in 20 games as a Sun Devil 10 each in 2011 and 2013. In 2013, all seven of his tackles came against Colorado on Oct. 12 in an overwhelming 54-13 win in which the Sun Devils led at halftime 47-6. He was listed as a starter at cornerback on ASUs depth chart this past spring. Interestingly, the final high school game of his career came against current Eastern quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. Among the returning safeties are UCLA transfer Tevin McDonald, who earned third team All-Big Sky Conference honors a year ago for the Eagles.

Among the returning letterwinners are six starters on offense and five on defense, as well as the schools punter and long snapper. Three All-Americans (quarterback Vernon Adams Jr., wide receiver Cooper Kupp and linebacker Ronnie Hamlin), lead the list of returning players. A total of 12 players who earned All-Big Sky Conference honors a year ago return, as well as Freshman All-American Samson Ebukam on the defensive line.

The Eagles lost three of their starters in the secondary, totaling 101 career starts, 644 tackles, 13 interceptions and 54 passes broken up between them. Graduation losses also cost the Eagles three of four starting defensive linemen and three starting offensive linemen. But just like last year, EWU has plenty of returning letterwinners at each position, plus a strong group of redshirt freshmen and true freshmen waiting in the wings.

A year ago, EWU lost all three of their starting wide receivers. Yet, EWU ended up having four players earn All-Big Sky honors in 2013, including Kupp, who won the Jerry Rice Award presented by The Sports Network to the top freshman in FCS. Three of four starting defensive linemen were lost, but EWU still managed to have six players along the defensive line earn postseason accolades.

In addition, a pair of starting linebackers were also lost from the 2012 squad, but now the Eagles enter 2014 with that position as a strength with the announcement that Ronnie Hamlin was successful in his appeal for a sixth year from the NCAA. That gives EWU returning starters at each linebacker position, but also with a deep and talented group of backups.

Eastern has won seven Big Sky Conference titles in school history, with titles in 1992, 1997, 2004, 2005, 2010, 2012 and 2013. Winning three titles in the last four years is unprecedented in school history. Moreover, the Eagles made their 10th playoff appearance, including seven in the last 10 seasons (1985, 1992, 1997, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013).

The Eagles are now 26-4 all-time on the red turf at Roos Field since 2010 when the stadium was renamed to Roos Field (formerly Woodward Field). Eastern avenged its first-ever loss at The Inferno with a 54-29 victory for the third-ranked Eagles over fourth-ranked Montana State on Nov. 9, 2013. Montana State handily defeated the Eagles 36-21 in Cheney in 2011, and the only other losses on the red turf were a 43-26 loss to Portland State on Oct. 29, 2011 (avenged 42-41 on Nov. 23, 2013), and setbacks in the semifinals of the FCS Playoffs by a 45-42 score against Sam Houston State in on Dec, 15, 2012, and 35-31 versus Towson on Dec. 21, 2013. Eastern was 8-0 at home during the debut year when EWU won the NCAA Division I title, 2-2 in 2011, 7-1 in 2012 and 7-1 in 2013.

Player Notes Sophomore Miquiyah Zamora nearly doubled his previous career-

best output with 11 tackles against Sam Houston State. His previous most was six last season as a redshirt freshman. He followed that with 10 against Montana Western, giving him a team-leading 21 after two games.

Vernon Adams Jr. has had 32 pass completions already in his career of at least 40 yards, including 20 for touchdowns. For of those were in his freshman season and 26 came 2013. For the second-straight year, Big Play V.A. was a finalist for Geico Play of the Year for his game-winning touchdown run versus Oregon State (8/31/13).

Eastern sophomore wide receiver/kickoff returner Shaq Hill has 13 plays of at least 40 yards in his young career, including kickoff returns of 99, 93, 80, 53 and 41 yards. He has also been involved in long pass plays of 86, 76, 68, 58, 56 (versus Sam Houston State on 8/23/14), 55 (versus Montana Western on 8/30/14), 54 and 44 yards, including seven from sophomore quarterback Vernon Big Play V.A. Adams. Included were TD receptions of 68 and 76 yards against Montana State (11/9/13), and an 86-yard TD catch versus Montana (10/26/13). All three rank in the top 50 in school history. He had a non-scoring kickoff return of 80 yards against Idaho State (11/2/13) and later scored on a 44-yard pass as he finished the game with 144 all-purpose yards on just three touches (two kickoff returns and one reception) for an average of nearly 50 yards per touch. One game earlier versus Montana, Hill had an 86-yard TD catch to rank as the eighth-longest in school history. He currently has the ninth-best career kickoff return average in school history (24.0) and is fifth in kickoff return yards (1,608).

Boise, Idaho, native Cody McCarthy had 24 tackles in the last two games of the 2013 season, and now has seven performances of at least 10 stops in his 36-game career (22 as a starter). He had 11 in the quarterfinals of the FCS Playoffs against Jacksonville State (12/14/13), then had a career-high 13 against Towson (12/21/13). He led EWU with 11 tackles for losses totaling 41 yards in the 2013 season. He has career totals of 217 tackles (25th in school history), 3 1/2 sacks and three passes broken up.

Vernon Adams Jr. currently has a career passing efficiency rating of 176.1 (64.6 percent, 7,627 yards, 84 TD, 24 INT), which currently ranks as the school and Big Sky record ahead of Erik Meyer (166.5 from 2002-05). A starter in 26 of the 29 games he has played in his career, Adams has a career average of 263.0 passing yards per game to currently third all-time at EWU. His 84 TD passes are already second, his 7,627 passing yards are third and his 8,643 yards of total offense are third. He is now 22-4 as a starter, with his lone losses coming against Southern Utah in 2012 and Toledo, Sam Houston State and Towson in 2013.

The 43.6 career punting average of sophomore Jake Miller currently ranks as a school record, placing him ahead of the 42.3 average of Jesse Nicassio (2002-03). He has had 32 punts of 50 yards or more in his career and 12 of at least 55. He owns 10 punts ranked in the top 36 in school history, with boots of 74, 66, 64, 59 (twice) and 57 (five times). In the 2013 season, he finished with a 42.8 average (fifth in school history) and had 16 of his 52 punts downed inside the 20-yard line. Named to the Big Sky Conference All-Academic team in 2013 and 2012, Miller had a school-record 74-yard punt versus Washington State (9/8/12), breaking the previous record of 71 set in 2006 by Ryan Donckers. His best in 2013 was a 66-yarder (seventh in school history). Millers average of 43.3 yards per punt in 2012 ranks third all-time in EWU history, just behind his No. 2 ranking with a 44.2 average in 2011 (the school record is 44.4). He finished with a 42.8 average in 2013 to rank fifth and give him three of the top five single season marks in school history. Of his 139 career punts, 46 have been downed inside the opponent 20-yard line.



Former Eagle Quarterback Matt Nichols, who wore jersey No. 16 and whose top single season passing yardage (3,830) and total offense marks (4,136) were obliterated by Vernon Adams Jr. (4,994 passing, 5,599 total offense) joked before the season about a jersey number change for Easterns current QB: Vernon Adams should not have moved from No. 16 to No. 3 thats the only bad move hes made so far.

Ronnie Hamlins long hair has been a trademark of his, and a friendly wager between teammates lasted three years. During the 2010 season, Hamlin and safety Jeff Minnerly challenged each other to see who could go the longest without cutting their hair. Linebacker Zach Johnson was also in on the wager, but dropped out after EWU won the NCAA Division I title. Minnerly eventually cut his hair on Dec. 17, 2012 -- just two days after his career and the 2012 season concluded -- and donated the hair to Locks of Love. Hamlin has continued to let his hair grow.

2013 Season Recap Notes Easterns 49-46 victory at No. 25 Oregon State on Aug. 31, 2013,

was just the fourth time since the division was created in 1978 that a FCS (formerly known as I-AA) team defeated a ranked FBS opponent. The other times that feat occurred came in 1983 (Cincinnati def. #20 Penn State 14-3), 2007 (Appalachian State def. #5 Michigan 34-32) and 2010 (James Madison def. #13 Virginia Tech 21-16).

As a team in 2013, EWU led FCS in passing efficiency (182.55), and was fourth in total offense (533.5 per game), fourth in passing (349.8), 41st in rushing (183.7) and seventh in scoring (39.5). Defensively, EWU was 104th in total defense (457.7), 74th in rushing (180.7), 115th in passing (277.1) and 73rd in scoring (28.3). In addition, the Eagles finished 10th in third-down conversions (48.1 percent), second in passing yards per completion (15.5) and 14th in pass completion percentage (65.6 percent).

Now a junior, Vernon Adams Jr. finished the 2013 season ranked No. 1 in passing efficiency in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (183.13), which set school and Big Sky records while ranking fourth all-time in FCS. He had a 65.6 percent completion rate (319-of-486 to rank 15th in FCS), 4,994 yards (second), 55 touchdowns (first) and 15 interceptions for the season. Adams was third in FCS in points responsible for with an average of 23.9 per game (total of 356 to lead FCS, with 55 TD passes, four rushing touchdowns and one two-point conversion). He was also second in FCS in total offense per game (373.3), fourth in passing yards per game (332.9 per game) and third in passing yards per completion (15.66). He had 55 touchdown passes in the 2013 season to lead FCS and come just one from the record of 56 shared by two players.

With at least one TD reception in the first 14 games of his career to set a FCS record, Cooper Kupp had 21 TD catches in 2013 to lead FCS in 2013 as a redshirt freshman. He finished with 93 catches a TD for every 4.4 catches and averaged 18.2 yards per catch (93-1691). He had 11 receptions of 40 yards are more, including six for scores. He was fifth in FCS and tops among freshmen in receiving yards per game (112.7), first in total receiving yards and 25th in receptions per game (6.2). He had eight or more catches seven times, and at least 100 yards on eight occasions. His 205 yards against Idaho State rank as the sixth-most all-time at EWU. He earned Freshman of the Week honors from The Sports Network twice in the 2013 season, and eventually was the runaway winner of the Jerry Rice Award given to the top freshman in FCS.

Ronnie Hamlin has made up for lost time, and now the Buck Buchanan Award candidate will get one more season to make it count. Nearing the school record for career tackles, the linebacker was given a sixth year by the NCAA to replace two other seasons wiped out because of

injuries. He is a 2009 graduate of Timberline High School in Lacey, Wash., and earned second team All-America and All-Big Sky honors in 2013 for the Eagles. Hamlin originally hurt his left knee on Sept. 2, 2009 just three days before EWU began its season. He had surgery to repair the anterior cruciate ligament on Oct. 21, but then tore the ACL again during spring practice on April 24, 2010. He had surgery on June 17, then didnt hit the practice field again until spring of 2011. Hamlin finished with 85 tackles his first season, 136 in 2012 and 140 last season to rank as the fourth-most in school history. He finished 12th in the voting for the 2013 Buck Buchanan Award presented by The Sports Network to the top defensive player in FCS.

Running back Quincy Forte wears the same jersey number 22 -- as former Eagle Taiwan Jones (now with the Oakland Raiders), and he put up some Jones-like numbers in the 2013 FCS Playoffs. With 202 yards and a touchdown in EWUs 41-17 win over South Dakota State (12/7/13), Forte had the 25th performance in school history with 200 rushing yards or more, and shattered his previous career high of 123 set earlier in the 2013 season. His performance was the best by an Eagle since Jones had 230 versus North Dakota State in the 2010 FCS Playoffs. He followed that with 190 yards against Jacksonville State (12/14/13) and 77 against Towson (12/21/13), giving Forte 1,208 yards on the season to rank eighth in school history. Eastern has now had a 1,000-yard rusher in 12 of the last 19 seasons (1995-2013), and the first since Jones had 1,742 in 2010. Fortes previous best back-to-back games came in early November when he had 123 and two touchdowns against Montana State (11/9/13), and one game earlier he had 119 rushing yards on just six carries (19.8 per rush) versus Idaho State (11/2/13). He had an 83-yard touchdown versus ISU that ranks as the ninth-longest rush in school history, and the longest since Jones had a school-record 96-yarder at Idaho State on Oct. 3, 2009.

Safety Tevin McDonald had his 2013 campaign ended in EWUs ninth game of the season with a leg injury, but it was enough to earn him third team All-Big Sky honors. He finished with 43 tackles, an interception, two passes broken up and a forced fumble. Previously, McDonald had 135 tackles in 27 career games (24 as a starter) at UCLA, plus four interceptions and 14 passes broken up. He is the son of six-time NFL All-Pro safety Tim McDonald, who is currently the defensive backs coach for the New York Jets where he previously coached former Eagle Isaiah Trufant (2002-05), who is now with the Cleveland Browns. Tevins brother, Tim, Jr., (goes by T.J.), was a senior All-America safety at USC in 2012 and was drafted in the third round of the 2013 NFL Draft by St. Louis.

Another talented transfer who joined the Eagles in 2013 was offensive lineman Jake Rodgers, a 12-game starter at Washington State in 2012. He played in 10 games for the Eagles, including the first two and the last two as a starter. A knee injury kept him out of five full games before he returned to action in six games as a sub. In 2012 at Washington State, Rodgers started at right guard in the teams season-opener at BYU, then started at left guard in WSUs 24-20 win over Eastern Washington. He started a total of three games at right guard (BYU, UNLV, Colorado), one at left guard (EWU), five at right tackle (Oregon, Oregon State, California, Stanford, Utah) and the final three games of the season at left tackle (UCLA, Arizona State, Washington).

Eastern had nine performances in the 2013 season of 500 or more yards, with five ranking in the top 22 in school history. Eastern had a school-record 743 yards of offense in EWUs 55-34 victory over Idaho State Nov. 2, with 432 through the air and 311 on the ground.



EAGLE EXCELLENCETEN NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (formerly I-AA) Playoff Berths

1985, 1992, 1997, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013

SEVEN Big Sky Championships, including back-to-back titles in 2004/2005 and 2012/20131992, 1997, 2004, 2005, 2010, 2012, 2013

For the second-straight year, Eastern came up a home win shy of a berth to the title game after losing at Roos Field in the semifinals of the 2013 NCAA Football Championship Subdivision Playoffs. Eastern defeated 13th-ranked South Dakota State (41-17) and #20 Jacksonville State (35-24) in its first two games, then fell to #5 Towson (35-31) to finish 12-3 on the season. Eastern hosted all three games at Roos Field in Cheney, Wash., and also hosted three games in 2012 (Roos Field), 2010 (Roos Field) and 1997 (Albi Stadium in Spokane). The Eagles won the outright Big Sky Conference title with a perfect 8-0 record and finished the year ranked third in The Sports Network Top-25 FCS Poll. It was the fourth time in school history EWU has finished fourth or higher in the final rankings of the season, and have now been ranked in the final FCS poll 11 times in school history (1985, 1992, 1993, 1997, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2012 and 2013).

Eastern ranked third in the final 2013 regular season and season-ending polls, and was seeded third in the playoffs. But the season was made even more historic by the way it began. Easterns 49-46 victory at No. 25 Oregon State on Aug. 31, 2013, was just the fourth time since the division was created in 1978 that a FCS (formerly known as I-AA) team defeated a ranked FBS opponent.

The 2012 Eagles also advanced to the semifinals of the FCS Playoffs, defeating Wagner (29-19) and #16 Illinois State (51-35), then falling to #5 Sam Houston State (45-42) to finish 11-3 on the season. The Eagles shared the Big Sky Conference title and finished the year ranked fourth in The Sports Network Top-25 FCS Poll.

Capping an 11-game winning streak to end the year, Eastern was the 2010 NCAA Division I National Champions. The top-ranked Eagles defeated #9 Southeast Missouri State (37-17), #25 North Dakota State (38-31 in overtime) and defending champion #10 Villanova (41-31) in three home playoff games, then defeated #5 Delaware (20-19) in the championship game on Jan. 7, 2011, in Frisco, Texas. Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell was selected as the games Most Outstanding Player after throwing three touchdowns passes in the final 16:48 as EWU rallied from a 19-0 deficit.

The Eagles ended both the 2010 regular season and the playoffs as the No. 1-ranked team in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision by both The Sports Network and in the FCS Coaches Poll. Eastern was also No. 1 in the first two polls of the 2011 season, and for two weeks in 2012. The Eagles were as high as second in 2013.

Two Payton Award Winners (Bo Levi Mitchell in 2011 and Erik Meyer in 2005), two Buchanan Award Winners (J.C. Sherritt in 2010 and Greg Peach in 2008) and a Jerry Rice Award recipient (Cooper Kupp) in the last nine seasons (2005-2013).

Former home of NFL All-Pro Offensive Tackle Michael Roos (Tennessee Titans), who has started all 218 football games (through the 2013 season) he has played in dating back to his sophomore season at EWU in 2002. He started 190 of a possible 190 games in that span until an appendicitis attack and subsequent surgery ended the streak in October 2012.

Two FCS Total Offense Championships (1997, 2001), as well as one passing offense title (2011) and one for scoring offense (2001). In EWUs last 10 seasons (2004-2013), EWU has ranked in the top 10 in passing eight times and total offense on six occasions.

Eagle Pride . . . Vernon Adams Jr. was runner-up in 2013 for the Payton Award given to the top player in FCS. He finished second in the nation in total offense (373.3 per game),

with school and Big Sky record totals of 5,559 yards of offense (second in FCS history), 4,994 passing yards (third) and 55 touchdown passes (third). His passing efficiency rating of 183.13 led the nation, ranks fourth all-time in FCS and broke EWU and Big Sky records.

Wide receiver Cooper Kupp accounted for four school, one Big Sky Conference and six FCS records with a sensational debut season of 93 catches for 1,691 yards and 21 touchdowns. He was selected as the recipient of the Jerry Rice Award given to the top freshman in FCS, and also was a unanimous first team All-America selection in FCS.

After a sensational season that saw him break a NCAA Football Championship Subdivision record, wide receiver Brandon Kaufman earned the 2012 FCS Wide Receiver Award from College Football Performance Awards (CFPA). Kaufman finished the 2012 campaign with a NCAA record 1,850 receiving yards, closing the year with 93 total catches and 16 receiving touchdowns in 14 games. Besides earning first team All-Big Sky Conference honors, Kaufman was selected to four All-America teams, including first team honors from College Sports Madness and Beyond Sports College Network. Kaufman broke the FCS record for single season receiving yards of 1,712 in EWUs 45-42 loss in the FCS Playoffs to Sam Houston State on Dec. 15. Kaufman finished the Sam Houston State game with nine catches for a career-high 215 yards and three touchdowns, with his yardage ranking fifth in school history. Kaufman signed a free agent contract with the Buffalo Bills in spring 2013.

Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell won the 2011 Walter Payton Award presented by The Sports Network to the top player in the NCAA Championship Subdivision. In 2011, Mitchell led the FCS in four categories, including passing yards (4,009) and touchdown passes (33) on his way to breaking four school records. He broke EWUs record for single season passing yards with 4,009, which ranks 17th in FCS history and fifth in Big Sky Conference history. He led EWU to a 19-7 record



in two years, including the 2010 NCAA Division I title with a 20-19 victory over Delaware. He was named the Most Outstanding Player of the championship game, throwing three touchdown passes as the Eagles rallied from a 19-0 deficit to score three TDs in the final 16:48. He now plays for Calgary in the Canadian Football League.

Linebacker J.C. Sherritt won the 2010 Buck Buchanan Award presented by The Sports Network to the top defensive player in the NCAA Championship Subdivision. He was also selected to six different All-America teams as a first team selection, and was the College Sporting News Defensive Player of the Year and the Big Sky Defensive MVP. He broke his own league and school records by finishing his senior season with 176 tackles, which ranks sixth in FCS history. He closed his career with a school-record 432 tackles to rank second in Big Sky history and 10th all-time in FCS. As a junior, he finished second in the voting for the 2009 Buchanan Award. On his way to earning first-team All-America honors on five different teams, he had a school and Big Sky Conference record 170 tackles, and led FCS with an average of 14.2 tackles per game. He is now with the Edmonton Eskimos in the CFL, where he was the leagues Defensive Player of the Year after finishing with a CFL record 130 tackles in 2012.

Eagle All-America offensive tackle Michael Roos became the highest draft choice in school history when Tennessee selected him in the second round of the 2005 NFL draft. He was the 41st selection overall, the third offensive tackle selected and the first NCAA Championship Subdivision player taken. In addition, he was the first Big Sky Conference player selected and the highest since 1989. In 2008, in just his fourth NFL season, he earned prestigious All-Pro honors.

Running back Taiwan Jones finished fourth in the voting for the 2010 Walter Payton Award presented by The Sports Network to the top player in FCS. He was also selected to five different All-America teams as a fi

eastern washington game notes, depth chart

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